Cowboy Bebop FREELANCERS The Tunes Of Loss



Chase Valentine was a fairly level-headed individual, nothing ever shocked him or surprised him and he'd never been

caught off his guard. Until the day his mother, who he hadn't seen in ten years had bailed him out of a setup

orchestrated by the closest thing Chase had to a friend. That man was now gone, cut down by Chase's own sword.

Datt Maimon grimaced at Faye Valetnine, his eyes darting from her to her son and back again. "How the hell did you find me?"

Chase asked finally, sheathing his katana and tucking it back into his coat. He drew a beretta from his holster, keeping it

squarely aimed at Datt as he moved closer to Faye. Her gaze seemed to move past Chase, as he heard a third gun being drawn.

"I had help, from an old friend." Faye answered, as Olga Valte stepped in front of Chase with a submachine gun in hand.

"Speaking of that old friend." Olga cued, raising an eyebrow at Faye as she smirked. Faye smirked back at her, a little

more darkly than Chase was used to seeing from his mother. True that in ten years she could have changed completely. Or perhaps

this was just the real her, Faye the hunter. Faye tossed Datt's gun to Chase, who caught it effortlessly and put it in his coat pocket.

Her now free hand reached down to the floor, where she'd set a large pouch down. She took the three million wulongs

from inside, tossing them to Olga. "You traitor!" Datt shouted, glaring at Olga with hate. "Freelance, look it up."

Olga responded, smirking at Datt as she put the money into her small hip pack.



Her usual fatigues and jumpsuit had been replaced by a tank top and short red dress. "Besides, she was never working

for you to begin with at all. I hired her." Faye explained, smiling as Datt became even angrier. "But the handoff was made,

you got your money you bitch!" Datt stammered, enraged by Olga's betrayal. "She got -my- money." Faye corrected,

looking at Chase as she explained the double-cross. "Three thousand wulongs for my transport to Tijuawana ahead

Mister Datt here, which your boss so graciously provided." Faye teased, enjoying the show as Datt squirmed in anger..

"And three million to me." Olga continued. "For telling Faye where and when the handoff would take place."

Datt's entire body was shaking all over, he was so angry he felt like exploding. "You...Are all going to pay. Most dearly."

Datt threatened, his fists clenching as he gritted his teeth. "Big talk from a dead man." Chase reminded him, holding the

beretta close enough for the metal barrel to touch Datt's skull. "You are most mistaken." Datt countered, as thrusters

whined overhead. "Shit!" Olga cursed, running outside to check out the sound. Datt Maimon began to laugh heartily,

smiling as he met Chase's glare. "That would be my men. Twenty of them, with orders to sweep this entire planet if

I did not return on time." Chase smirked, seeing why Datt had seemed so unafraid of the situation. Even if he died

there were plenty of men left to avenge him. "Stupid syndicate goons, you're all the same." Chase said, ending Datt

Maimon's life with the pull of a trigger. Faye's eyes went wide, as Chase turned back to her. His face was streaked with

blood, his expression was reminiscent of a wild animal, she'd seen the same look on Spike's face many times. "You should go."

Chase told her coldly, walking to the door as Faye blankly stared first at her son, then down at Datt's body.



"Ten years.." Faye said scornfully, as Chase stopped at the open door. "Ten years, and that's all you have to say to me

you ungrateful, immature little.." Chase turned sharply, matching Faye's scornful look. "I'm the one who left, remember?"

Chase stated, hating the feelings that were stirring inside him from seeing her again. "I said everything I had to say to you

that day, there's nothing more." His words hurt Faye badly, she had missed him so much all these years. He didn't

seem to have missed her at all though, and that hurt her a lot. "So what now, should I just leave? Do you want me to

just leave you to fend for yourself and go home?" Faye questioned, putting the glock away. "That sounds about right."

Chase answered, turning away from her. He loved her, he really did. She was his mother for Christ's sake, how could he not?

"Don't get the wrong idea, mom." Chase continued, still facing away from her. "I left because I was a burden to you, I couldn't

watch you struggle anymore. He left us mom, both of us. He was never there, and you couldn't support us both on your own."

Faye's eyes misted slightly, as she walked over to Chase. He turned around just in time to receive her embrace, feeling

as if his guts were being tied together. It hurt to see her, it hurt too much. He had learned to live alone at such an early age,

that seeing her now was almost as painful as leaving had been all those years ago. "I love you mom." Chase whispered,

holding her tightly. "And that's why you have to go, I don't want you hurt..." A gunshot rang out, as Chase felt a heavy impact

push both of them against the wall. Chase gasped in horror, as Faye's yellow shorts and top were now stained with red.

Another gunshot rang out, as a syndicate troop knocked down the door and fell dead inside the room. Chase and Faye were

trapped under it, and Chase saw a single bullethole near the middle of the door. Olga came rushing in, stopping short as she saw Chase.

"Oh damnit! There's a lot more than twenty of them Faye!" She shouted, lifting up the door. "Help Me!" Chase cried,

picking Faye up in his arms. Olga's eyes went wide as she saw Faye, blood seeping from the hole in her chest.

"Oh Shit, this is really bad." Olga gasped, taking Faye from his arms. She layed Faye down on the table, ripping a section of her

dress off and pressing the cloth to Faye's wound. "It's no good, she's losing too much blood!" Olga shouted, as Chase watched

from the doorway. His mind was racing, it couldn't be true. To see his one parent again, only to have her taken from him.

It was different when they were apart, and he felt sure she was doing better without him. But to have her gone, really gone.

"She'll make it!" Chase protested, running to Faye's side. "We have to get her out of here!" Olga eyed him skeptically,

checking her hip pack for extra ammo. "There's too many of them, kid. At least fifty of them, and they're coming straight here."

Olga reported sadly, touching Faye's hand. She gazed at Olga, smiling weakly as she gave her hand a squeeze. "It's not a world

for women anymore, is it Olga?' Faye remarked softly, as Olga smiled back. Chase stood by helplessly, watching as his

mother was bleeding her last. Suddenly the fear and pain inside him subsided, and he only felt anger. Hot, boiling anger towards

Datt, and his troops, and Russ who'd sold him out to begin with. Chase drew both berettas from his holster, gritting his teeth

as he started for the door. "No Chase, stay with me." Faye pleaded weakly, looking to Olga as Chase remained at his mother's side.



"I'll take care of it, Faye." Olga said, agreeing to Faye's unspoken request. Chase offered her the berettas, which she took with a wink

as she ran out the doorway. "Don't try to talk." Chase cautioned, leaning closer to Faye as he took her hand.

Faye persisted, coughing a little before the words came. "He didn't leave us, Chase. Your father, he.." Chase frowned at the

mention of him, hating him more than ever for abadoning them. "He saved us all, before..Before you were ever born." Faye continued,

wishing she had told him sooner. He had only been ten, when he'd left home. Thinking that his father had never been there, that

he'd never cared for them. It was so far from the truth that she had to set the record straight now, she owed Spike at least that.

"I don't want to hear anything about him, mom." Chase refused, pressing the cloth from Olga's dress firmly against the bullet wound.

"You have to listen, Chase." Faye persisted, grabbing his hand with her own, pushing the cloth aginst her chest even harder.

"Spike..Your father, he saved both our lives, lots of others too. There was a weapon, a terrible weapon that was destroying

planets, he.." Chase didn't want to believe it, yet at the same time he was tempted to. To know that his father had good reason to

be gone, that he didn't just leave him and his mother to fend for themselves. He wanted to believe it more than anything, really.

"Then why'd he have to go away?" Chase asked rather childishly, not sure what he was feeling. "Why couldn't he come back?"

Faye winced, closing her eyes as she coughed up blood. "He chose to die, Chase. And he did it so that you'd have a future.

I gave birth to you, I rasied you. But it's because of him that I ever survived to do it, he gave you life Chase. Do you know why

I gave you that name?" Chase was extemely skeptial, certain that Faye only wanted him to stop hating his father for leaving.

It was too farfetched, too strange. And too good to be true. "Why?" Chase indulged her, a small part of him wondering

where she had gotten such a name. "Because.." Faye whispered, smiling up at him. "He told me, that he'd

make sure we lived. That he'd make the world a place for you to chase after all your dreams.." Chase's stomach clenched up at that,

thinking that it might be true after all. If it were, it would be as hard to live with as having no dad at all. Harder even, he didn't

need that in his life. He'd already tasted his share of sadness and hard times, he didn't want any more. But his father had given

them anyway, because his son was just so special to him. "I can finally see him again, Chase. It's been so hard without him

here...." Chase took a long ragged gasp, his eyes shedding tears as Faye Valentine left him to rest with her husband.

Chase closed his eyes, hunched over her body for a short time. Then he suddenly rose to his feet , his body driven by sheer

emotion as he unsheathed the katana.



Chase sprinted outside in a flurry, and saw Olga fending off a crowd of syndicate goons with his berettas. He ran headlong

into the fray, slicing madly as he rushed to Olga's side. "How is she?" Olga shouted to him over the gunfire, as Chase

pressed his back up against hers. "She's gone." Chase answered grimly, as Olga handed his guns back to him. "Get going."

Olga demanded, slapping her last magazine into the submachine gun as Chase shot the last of the syndicate men.

Several more of them arrived, opening fire on Olga and Chase from across the street. "What? But you're almost out of ammo!"

Chase shouted back, picking off two men as the new group of troops closed in on them. "Go to this address." Olga ordered,

turning to Chase as she handed him a scrap of paper. Chase shook his head in defiance as he took it, and shot two more

troops. "I'm not leaving you here like this!" Chase shouted, as a bullet caught Olga in the shoulder. She winced and returned fire,

paying almost no attention to the deep wound. "It's already been decided kid, now stop wasting time and go!" Olga insisted,

as Chase took down two more of the advancing troops. "I can't just.." He started, receiving a strong elbow to his side from

Olga. "She told me to get you out if things got hairy, kid. I knew the risks when I came here and I can handle things by myself, now split!"

Olga interrupted, ending the argument as she took two small charges from her hip pack. She threw them at the group of men,

ducking as they exploded into twin clouds of smoke. Olga rushed into the cloud, submachine gun blazing as Chase finally

gave up. He knew if they'd found him here, then they must have his place covered already. There's no going back now,

Chase thought as he ran for all he was worth. A car with more syndicate men sped around the corner, bearing down on him

as he leapt into the air. Chase landed on the speeding car's roof and drew both berettas, firing down into the car until both guns

clicked empty. He saw the dead end wall too late, and was thrown violently off the car as it collided with concrete.



Chase rolled twice, barely avoiding gunfire from the car's one surviving passenger. The man had a broken left arm, hanging

dead at his side while his right hand kept firing the handgun. Chase bolted towards him, drawing the katana quickly as the man

screamed profanity at him. He still had three shots left in the gun when Chase's blade cut through his midsection, causing another

scream before the man dropped at Chase's feet. The car was all banged up now, and the front end ressembled a broken accordian.

Chase pulled the remaining bodies from the car, and got into the driver's seat with only a moment's thought of Olga's

well-being. He hoped she was as good as she thought she was, unless she'd never intended on surviving the day's events in the first place.

"Too many people are dying on my account." Chase cursed gruffly, turning the ignition key. Miraculously the engine turned over,

as Chase backed the car over it's former occupants. He drove the mangled heap as fast as it would go, hoping he could catch the next flight

headed for Venus before the syndicate caught him. He had no idea who he would meet at the address Olga had given him, but whoever

it was had a lot of explaining to do.